A Quick Trip and Summer Check-In

So, we got away for a quick day trip to Old Forge last Friday! And, of course, the weather sucked. I mean, felt like a drizzly, cold autumn day. Luckily, we both love the fall, so it wasn't a huge downer. Just a little road bump.

Here's a quick recap of the day. Let's see. We left a bit later than I had expected, but since I knew it wouldn't be a super full day, it totally didn't matter. And, unfortunately, Hadman wasn't great in the car to OR from Old Forge. Eh. Ya win some, ya lose some.

We drove into town and found a parking spot. Since it wasn't quite lunch time and the farmers' market wasn't open for business yet, we decided to make a stop at the Old Forge Hardware Store. It's not really a hardware store as much as a general store, including tons of kitchen items and toys and books. Of course, we left with a book for the little guy.

Then, it was time for lunch. We hit up the Adirondack Cafe, and considering it's hard to navigate this place without a stroller, it was great to be welcomed to the place. (Walt's Diner was embarrassingly not great about it.) Tough when it's a touristy town.

Anyhoo, we had a great meal, then walked through a fine mist over the infamous bridge down by the lake to see Hadman's favorite -- duckies! They were, luckily, loving the weather.

Then, we decided to try the beach area nearby. Sure, it wasn't warm enough to ENJOY it, but we had fun walking around and collecting things. And, of course, some more ducks came by to say "hi" again. I even stuck my feet in the sand (although it doesn't really count on my summer list...not really what I meant).

We walked to the farmers' market, but it started raining heavier and there wasn't tons to choose from. We did leave with some wine from the Montezuma Winery (a super sweet Fat Frog Red and delicious Canvasback Red) and some raw honey for Dave.

After the market, we decided to drive the back roads near the ski slopes (you can actually ride the ski lift to get a great view, but with a wriggly 2-year-old and on-and-off rain, it wasn't happenin') and saw at least half a dozen random deer, a family of turkies, and a fox. Fun, fun!!

All the while, Dave and I realized we were both craving a donut. Just a cup of coffee and a donut. For some reason, we continued our drive in the opposite direction and happened upon this joint...

Bingo! It was like a place you would've found in the '40s. They only had coffee and two kinds of donuts. Just two tables for outdoor seating. It was perfect. And, yes, I wore a sweater and scarf. 'Twas chilly! Just the right kind of day for a homemade donut and a big, super hot cup of coffee.

So, it wasn't the greatest day ever, but we had a good time. It also makes me want to hit up a farmers' market with more locally-grown produce, and that's labeled for it. Just saying.

Oh, and what better time than now (not that summer's over -- it's not!!!!) to check in with my summer fun list:

A couple of them weren't done as much as I like (like family walks, and the garden had a major issue I'll get into later), but they were done. I'm also hoping to putter a bit more, get a WARM sandy day, and I'm thisclose to finishing two books. TWO! That's humongous, folks.

How's your summer going? And don't tell me about your kids returning to school already. Our neck of the woods, the kids don't go back (meaning I don't return to work) until after Labor Day. Let me have this!!! ;-) Just kidding, you can tell me about it, but I'll be plugging my ears and singing "la la la" the whole time.